Fur and Feathers
by Paceso
Summary: In the aftermath of Umbridge's dissolution of the DA, Seamus helps Lavender achieve a corporeal Patronus. An extra entry for the International Wizarding School Championship, standing in for an absent team member.


Beauxbatons - standing in for 4th yr

WC 1696

Theme – Expecto Patronum

Prompts: Lavender/Seamus (main) / "You're my very own prince charming," she said. / Valentine's Day

* * *

Fur and Feathers

It was two days since Professor Umbridge had caught several members of Dumbledore's Army, and Dumbledore had horrified the students by his acceptance of responsibility for the DA. Everyone knew that Professor Umbridge was absolutely furious, both at the DA members and at Marietta, who had, at the last moment, been unable to confirm her earlier disclosures about the group's ongoing meetings. Umbridge's palpable fury was all the more alarming because of the saccharine sweetness with which she attempted to disguise it. Most students dreaded her classes, knowing that the least infraction would result in hundreds of lines with the Blood Quill. Only the Weasley twins seemed able to ignore the threat and maintain their bold demeanour.

Regardless of the constant stream of decrees Umbridge kept putting up on the noticeboard, forbidding any mention of recent events, the tale of Dumbledore's dramatic exit had flown all round the school, so that even those who had not been there knew exactly what had happened. Safely out of hearing of Umbridge and any members of the Inquisitorial Squad, they gasped at his audacity while they bemoaned his loss to the school.

"It isn't _fair_," thought Lavender, as she practised wand movements with a frown of concentration. "I mean, I know we were breaking rules, but I've never learnt as much as when Harry was teaching us. And now we don't even have Dumbledore."

Her hand faltered as that sobering thought interrupted her attempt at casting the charm. She shook her head, then collected her thoughts and tried to concentrate again. She worked on the same movement over and over before flopping into a chair with an exasperated sigh. "I just can't get it right," she said aloud.

"What can't you get right?" asked Seamus, walking into the room.

Tears of frustration sprang into Lavender's eyes. "I can't make a proper Patronus," she pouted.

"Oh my gosh, isn't that an _awesome_ spell?" said Seamus excitedly. "I was so thrilled when mine appeared, even though it was so quick that all I could see was that it was something hairy – "

He broke off abruptly as he saw Lavender's downcast face, and recollected that all she had produced were puffs of vapour.

"Look," he said awkwardly, "I'm not really that much better at it than you, but would you like me to practise with you?"

"Oh, _yes_!" Lavender's face brightened. "I'm sure it'd be easier with someone else to help me. Some of the time today I didn't even got the puffs of stuff that I got the other day. And – it's really important, isn't it? I mean, the way Umbridge is going, you can see that we're actually going to need to know this stuff."

Seamus put an arm around his friend. "I know what you mean. I feel really bad now, about not believing Harry about You-Know-Who coming back. Me mam still doesn't believe it, you know, but when I go home for the holidays I'm going to change her mind."

Lavender looked at him with admiration. "Oh Seamus, I'm sure you will," she breathed.

Seamus blushed. He had always had a crush on Lavender, and had even dared to send her an anonymous Valentine's Day card this year. He still wondered if she had guessed who it was from.

"Well, er, shall we – " He cleared his throat, which had suddenly become unaccountably husky. " Shall we try the spell?"

Lavender seemed not to have heard his question. She was still gazing at him, and he could see his reflection in her widened eyes.

"Er…Lavender?"

Her expression had become dreamy.

"Seamus," she responded softly. "It was you, wasn't it?"

"I – er – what?"

"It was you who sent me that valentine, wasn't it?" she asked, still in the same dreamy tone.

"Um – " Seamus hoped she wasn't going to recite it. He was sure it would sound totally stupid when spoken aloud.

"You know, the one that went 'Lavender is blue, they say/When making ladies' gowns/But I must disagree with them/My Lavender is Brown."

He was right; it _did_ sound stupid. He blushed again. "Er, well, yes. It was me. Did – did you like it?"

"Oh, it was _beautiful_." she breathed fervently. "So _romantic_. _All_ my friends thought it was _lovely_."

Seamus grew even more embarrassed at the thought of his painstakingly-concocted valentine being cooed over by all of Lavender's giggly friends.

"Er…well…will you – " He found it difficult to ask the question, despite having rehearsed this moment many times in his mind. He took a deep breath, " – go out with me?"

"I'd _love_ to," sighed Lavender, contentedly. "And…and although it's too late for Valentine's Day, won't you kiss me, Seamus?"

She lifted up her face to his, and he bent and kissed her awkwardly on the corner of her mouth. She flung her arms around him and returned the kiss with enthusiasm and not a little proficiency. Seamus was startled by her fervour, but he did his best to imitate her.

When they finally broke apart, Seamus wondered if he would still be able to speak. His lips felt strange and misshapen, and his throat was dry. He attempted briskness in an effort to cover his confusion.

"R-right. Well, I think we should try the charm, don't you?"

Lavender's voice was breathless. "Oh…yes. Yes, we should."

They looked awkwardly away from each other as they got to their feet and adopted a defensive attitude.

"Ready, then? Have you got your happy memory in your head?"

Lavender nodded, and Seamus blushed again as it flashed through his mind that perhaps she was thinking of their recent kiss as her happy memory, but he thrust the thought away from him.

"Together, on three. One…two…three!" said Seamus.

Their voices blended together in a shout of, "_Expecto Patronum_!"

From Seamus's wand burst a furry creature but, as in that last meeting of the DA, it disappeared too quickly for him to make out what it was. Lavender was standing with her eyes tightly closed and a look of intense concentration on her face, as ever-growing puffs of vapour emerged from the tip of her wand.

"Come on, Lavender, come on," urged Seamus. "You've almost got it."

Lavender opened her eyes, and gave a gasp of disappointment as she saw the vapour disappear. "Oh no!" she cried. "I really thought – "

"I know," said Seamus sympathetically. "I kept getting that too, in the DA meeting, until nearly at the end. But remember it still works against the Dementors even if it's not a corporeal one."

Lavender sighed. "I know, but it'd be so nice to have a _proper_ one. I mean, all those silver animals were just so gorgeous. And I'm longing to know what mine would be if I had one."

Seamus nodded. "I get so frustrated at mine not staying for long enough to see what it is. I _think_ it's a fox, or something like that. Or maybe a badger."

"Oh, I love badgers!" enthused Lavender. "They're such sweet things, with their striped noses, and I love how intelligent they are. Do you know, an old farmer near my home told me that if you set a trap for them, they do a somersault on it to spring the trap, then take the bait and walk off with only a few hairs from their back missing! I think that's just so clever."

Seamus was surprised. "Someone near _my_ home told me the same thing," he said, "but I didn't believe him. I suppose it must be true."

He paused, and then laughed a little shamefacedly. "I guess I didn't believe Harry about You-Know-Who for the same reason – because it sounded so far-fetched. And me mam was totally convinced that the Daily Prophet wouldn't be lying to us, and that Harry was a bit crazy. She kept asking me if Harry had done the things they said – you know, collapsed in class, and had weird visions and stuff – and I couldn't tell her he hadn't. It's almost been a bit creepy sharing a bedroom with him because of all the weird stuff that seems to happen around him."

Lavender nodded understandingly. "I know. I always wonder why Hermione sticks to him like glue. She's so keen on not believing anything that isn't proven, but then she goes and accepts anything Harry says, no matter how bizarre it sounds."

Seamus heaved a sigh. "I just wish I'd started believing him a bit earlier. I could kick myself when I think of all the DA meetings I missed because I was being so pig-headed. All the rest of you learnt so much, and I only had that one lesson right at the end."

"But you still managed the Patronus better than I did," said Lavender enviously. "I'll tell you what," she bargained, "I'll teach you all the rest that Harry taught us if you just help me to get that Patronus right."

Seamus laughed. "It's a deal!"

He leapt to his feet and pulled her up to stand with him. "Here we go. Happy memory – ready?"

Lavender focused with all her might on her happiest thought. It wasn't, as Seamus had half-feared, their recent kiss, although that was part of it. It was the whole thing – that Seamus had finally plucked up the courage to declare his feelings for her with his Valentine's Day card, that she'd found the right time to ask him about it, and that they were now working together to help each other.

"_Expecto Patronum_!"

A beautiful silver dove burst forth from Lavender's wand and flew around them in graceful circles. Lavender's mouth became a round O of astonishment.

"Oh," she whispered, awed. "It's _beautiful_!"

Seamus glanced at her. "So are you, princess," he murmured.

Lavender turned to him with none of her usual giggliness. "I don't know how to thank you. I really, really wanted to get that right, and I couldn't have done it without you. You're my very own prince charming."

She moved closer to him, and Seamus enfolded her in a warm hug. Then he kissed her without a trace of his earlier awkwardness, while the silver dove hovered protectively over them both.


End file.
